PLAYER TO WATCH: Chris Osgood. He is 11 wins away from becoming the 10th NHL goalie with 400 wins. Osgood is 84-27-18 in the regular season and 29-12 in the playoffs since coming back to the Red Wings for a second stint before the 2005-06 season.

ICING: Nicklas Lidstrom had his run of three straight Norris Torphy wins snapped by Boston's Zdeno Chara, but was a finalist for the 10th time in 11 seasons with six trophy wins. Lidstrom, the only European captain of a Cup champion, was third among NHL defenseman with 59 points - including 16 goals. He needs three points to become the eighth NHL defenseman with 1,000. Lidstrom has had a plus rating in each of his 17 NHL seasons. Last season he was plus-31. Pavel Datsyuk was fourth in scoring with 97 points, matching the career high he set the previous season. He won multiple awards for the second straight year, taking the Lady Byng and Selke. He is the first player to win both in consecutive seasons.

CHICAGO BLACKHAWKS

LAST SEASON: 46-24-12, 104 points. Lost to Detroit 4-1 in conference finals.

PLAYER TO WATCH: Marian Hossa. Now on his fourth team in three seasons, Hossa is still looking for his first championship ring. He left the runner-up Penguins last summer to join the Red Wings only to see Pittsburgh knock off him and his Detroit teammates in the finals rematch last season.

ICING: The Blackhawks' 46 wins were their most since winning 47 in the 1992-93 season. Young forward Patrick Kane will face enormous pressure as he tries to rebuild his image after an offseason brush with the law. Kane scored 25 goals and finished second on the team in scoring behind Martin Havlat, who left via free agency. Team captain Jonathan Toews was first with 34 goals and led the team in his first year at the helm on a surprising run to the Western Conference finals.

ST. LOUIS BLUES

LAST SEASON: 41-31-10, 92 points. Lost to Vancouver 4-0 in first round.

PLAYER TO WATCH: T.J. Oshie. The center was second among rookies in scoring from January until the end of the season. He had 12 goals and 23 assists in the final 45 games.

ICING: The Blues had the NHL's best record in the second half of the season, going 25-9-7 and moving up from last in the West to the No. 6 seed in the playoffs. St. Louis hadn't reached the postseason since 2004. Chris Mason starts the season as the No. 1 goalie after winning the job last season. Mason started the Blues' final 33 games and went 24-8-6 with a 2.08 goals-against average and five shutouts down the stretch. He will be helped on defense by the return of 21-year-old Erik Johnson, who missed all of last season due to a freak preseason knee injury. Johnson topped Blues defensemen was second among rookies in scoring during the 2007-08 season despite missing 10 games early. He finished with five goals and 28 assists after being the top pick in the 2006 draft.

PLAYER TO WATCH: Steve Mason. The reigning rookie of the year will be counted on to repeat his performance that included an NHL-leading 10 shutouts and a goals-against average of 2.10 that was seconf to Vezina Trophy winner Tim Thomas of Boston.

ICING: Mason had a franchise-record three straight shutouts in late December. His 8-2-4 record late in the season helped the Blue Jackets reach the playoffs for the first time. The stakes will now be raised in Columbus, where increased success is expected. C Samuel Pahlsson will help Columbus in the offensive and defensive zones. He has reached the West finals four times and the Stanley Cup finals twice in six seasons. He had seven goals and 11 assists in 65 games last season with Anaheim and Chicago. Rick Nash scored 40 goals and added a career high with 39 assists. He has been the team's top goal-scorer for five straight seasons.

PLAYER TO WATCH: Steve Sullivan, who returned in January from a nearly two-year absence due to a back injury. He is the third player since World War II, joining Mario Lemieux and Jim Peplinski, to play 150 games with a team, miss at least 600 consecutive days, and then return to that team. Sullivan had 11 goals and 21 assists in 41 games last season and was given the Masterton Trophy which recognizes perseverance, sportsmanship and dedication to hockey.

ICING: Pekka Rinne earned wins in his first six decisions to gain the starting job in goal. He then played in 30 of the final 35 games. Overall he went 29-15-4 and tied for the eighth-most wins by a rookie goalie. Predators captain Jason Arnott established a team record by scoring 33 goals, doing it in only 65 games last season. That equaled his career-best goal total set when he was a rookie with Edmonton during the 1993-94 season. Arnott missed 11 games but came back to reach the 20-goal mark for the 10th straight season and 12th time in 15.

Bill Daly, Deputy Commissioner of the National Hockey League, released the following statement regarding today’s ruling by Bankruptcy Court Judge Redfield T. Baum: "We are pleased that the Bankruptcy Court has confirmed the League’s rights to select its owners and the location of its franchises. We are reviewing the opinion and considering how we can best address the Court’s concerns regarding our offer to purchase the Coyotes. It remains our goal to secure the long-term stability of the Coyotes in Glendale."